Yeovil Town went out of the FA Cup in a Third Round Replay against Carlisle United that went all the way at Huish Park tonight. The Cumbrians gained a televised Fourth Round home tie against Everton thanks to a 5-4 penalty shoot-out that saw Matt Dolan's penalty - the ninth out of the ten - saved onto the post, allowing Mark Ellis the chance to win the tie for Carlisle. Before that, fans had seen 120 minutes worth of drama, as Jack Compton's goal on the half hour mark was scored from the edge of the box, and that looked to be enough until Antony Sweeney scored a scrappy equaliser with 13 minutes of normal time remaining. The game boiled over at that point, with Jabo Ibehre incredibly lucky to stay on the pitch for smashing his arm into goalkeeper Artur Krysiak, whist in extra time Alex Lacey walked for a foul, whilst Luke Joyce was also dismissed for two bookable offences. Yeovil could have won the match with the last kick of normal time, but saw Francois Zoko's poor 93rd minute penalty scuffed wide of the post - a moment that would cost the Glovers when the match eventually went the distance.

The Glovers made one change to their starting line-up, with captain Darren Ward ruled out by a knee problem that has seen swelling build up - he will be in for a scan on that problem later in the week. His place in the side was taken by Alex Lacey, who was getting his first start for nearly two months, having only been brought on twice as a substitute since Paul Sturrock left the club. On the bench, there was some big news, as Kevin Dawson and Simon Gillett both returned to the squad, with an Achilles problem meaning that Marc Laird stepped out of the squad.

On a rapidly freezing pitch, both clubs took their time to adjust to the conditions. The first 20 minutes saw the sight of players from both teams perpetually losing their footing, whilst any shots on goal went well wide of the target. Alex Gilliead put wide for Carlisle, whilst Matt Dolan saw a long range effort go over the crossbar, with Francois Zoko and Jack Compton putting wide soon after. It took half an hour before any side had worried the keepers - an Antony Sweeney header was saved from eight yards by Artur Krysiak - a comfortable one, but notable that he had been left entirely in free space.

Half an hour into the game, the Glovers took the lead in their first genuinely flowing move of the half. Shaun Jeffers was the instigator, as his darting run saw Carlisle players backing off, and when he slipped the ball square to Jack Compton, midfielder Liam Walsh ran over the ball, wrong footing Carlisle's defence, and giving Compton a chance to fire the ball into the back of the net from the edge of the box. That was deserved from Compton, given that he had been causing Carlisle problems throughout the 45 minutes, cutting in from the right flank on many occasions.

The half finished with a sign of what was to come in the game. Connor Roberts picked up a booking for a challenge on Hallam Hope that was a bulk standard yellow, and three minutes later Hope crashed into Roberts in what was obvious retribution for the earlier foul - he landed himself in the book as well, and with referee Tim Robinson failing to keep a lid on the game, the game turned increasingly tetchy. The feeling at the break was that it would be unlikely for both sides to end with eleven men.

Carlisle boss Keith Curle presumably wasn't happy with what he saw in the first period, as he made a double substitution at the break, albeit with Danny Grainger's probably forced due to a foot injury. Early chances all went Yeovil's way, with Jack Compton at the heart of it all. First he put in a difficult cross that evaded everyone, as Shaun Jeffers stretched for the ball, forcing Carlisle keeper Mark Gillespie into an unexpected save as the cross went all the way through as an on-target shot. Then Compton produced a curling effort that definitely had the keeper beaten - but unfortunately found the top of the crossbar in the way. The same player shot wide, with the home side threatening.

Gradually though, Yeovil seemed to lose their rhythm and shape, and in the closing stages, Carlisle pushed more men forward and Yeovil began to get sucked into their own third. Artur Krysiak had to tip over an Antony Sweeney effort, and then a terrific block from Alex Lacey saw Jabo Ibehre's effort stopped at its source. Yeovil went straight down the other end only to find more great defending, as Mark Ellis blocked out Francois Zoko's attempt to catch Carlisle on the break.

With 13 minutes remaining, Carlisle got their equalising goal. Yeovil failed to clear their lines under extreme Carlisle pressure and although Artur Krysiak palmed the ball away, and Alex Lacey cleared off the line, it kept getting returned back into the six yard area. An Antony Sweeney header scrappily crossed the line for an equalising goal, and now it was game on at 1-1.

At this point, Huish Park got treated to a display of what can only be described as extreme thuggery. In the aftermath of the goal, with players milling around, Jabo Ibehre raced in from 30 yards away and performed what is known as the 'clothesline' in wrestling - a straight-arm smash on Artur Krysiak's neck/jaw area, leading to a melee between the two teams. Somehow referee Tim Robinson rules that Ibehre's ugly assault was only worthy of a yellow card, and decided to add salt to the wound by deciding that Krysiak's reaction to getting a smash around the head also deserved a yellow. You'll find it hard to see a more obvious case of the definition of violent conduct - but not in the eyes of the match official.

With three minutes to go, one of the biggest cheers of the night came when Kevin Dawson got his first appearance for the club in 12 months and 15 days. Then with 93 minutes on the clock, deep into five minutes of injury time, Yeovil could have won the match. Francois Zoko was fouled inside the box, giving the Glovers a chance to seal the game. Zoko himself went on penalty duties after a lengthy discussion, with Matt Dolan having had a spot kick saved at Morecambe just three days previously. But they may have wished that they had stuck with their regular penalty taker, as Zoko's awful spot kick was tamely dragged well wide of the post, taking the game into extra time.

Extra time saw tired legs from both teams, and perhaps that contributed to referee Tim Robinson getting even more involved in the game. He dished out a straight red card to Alex Lacey for his poor tackle on Charlie Wyke, meaning he will miss three matches for a suspension, and then six minutes later the official made it ten vs ten when he sent off Luke Joyce for a second bookable offence after he committed a fairly average foul. Overall eight yellow cards and two red cards raised by the official, and although Lacey and Joyce could have few complaints, their fouls stood in sharp contrast to Jabo Ibehre's earlier actions.

Both sides had chances to win it - Jabo Ibehre forced Artur Krysiak into a strong save, whilst at the other end a Ben Tozer effort took a deflection for a corner, whilst Francois Zoko put a header into the side netting. In the closing stages Jakub Sokolik forced saves from two headers. In the closing stages, Ibehre could have walked again - a bad foul on Connor Roberts seemed meat'n'drink for a second yellow, but referee Tim Robinson's dreadful night continued as he chose to merely draw Carlisle's captain over to issue a 'final' warning - something that Carlisle's striker didn't deserve.

In the end, the game went to penalty kicks, with all ten being of decent quality. Unfortunately, there always has to be a loser in a penalty shoot-out, and that took a twist on Yeovil's fifth penalty, and the ninth of the shoot-out. Matt Dolan's effort was tipped onto the goalpost and stayed out, leaving Mark Ellis the chance to send his team through to the Fourth Round. For Carlisle, a big windfall, and a glamour tie against Everton on TV awaits. For the Glovers, they'll be making a nostalgic trip back to Kingstonian FC's ground that weekend - now home of AFC Wimbledon - and with hard graft needed over the next 20 games to ensure that trips to such venues are not part of their future.